Contents

During the height of the KessRith wars in the late 6500s, posting to an Illustris-class battleship was considered the peak of a Terran Republic naval military career. This massive ship, whose huge laser bays could strip enemy ships of their armor with a single broadside, was always in the forefront of any fighting.

Though considered to be in its decline, the Illustris is only reluctantly giving way to such newer battleship classes as the Shiva. For sheer firepower, however, the Illustris knows no match, but the rising cost of the war with the Commonwealth has made the use of such an enormous ship almost prohibitive.

The Illustris mounts two hundred 37.5/30 lasers, the largest made. It is these weapons bays that give the Illustris the long-range firepower that is its hallmark. Supplementing the 37.5/30s are half-bays (battlewagon slang for 50) of 22.5/30 and 15/30 lasers. An attack by this devastating broadside is more feared than anything else in the TOG arsenal. Unlike other ships commonly assigned to fleet duty, the Illustris packs a surprisingly potent fore and aft attack capability that allows it to fend off a concentrated attack even if the battleship becomes separated from its attendant vessels. The Type E spinal mount is the largest available, as befits a ship of this size. Many a tale recounts how this massive weapon has devastated enemy destroyers and frigates with a single shot.

The Illustris carries two full groups of fighters to supplement its impressive firepower. Rotated on an annual basis, these fighters perform a wide range of duties when the ship is on patrol. Standard doctrine calls for the deployment of one group of mixed medium fighters, eight squadrons of mixed heavy fighters, and four squadrons of light fighters. Although the mix varies greatly, Spiculums, Arcuses, and Verutums are most common.

The best-known engagement involving the Illustris occurred during the defection of the Renegade Legions in 6682, just after their epic battle with the KessRith in the Frawtaw's Star region. When the TOG fleet suddenly arrived, the KessRith withdrew and the Renegade forces were momentarily stunned. Ignoring its impending doom, the Liberty, a Renegade Illustris Class battleship, stood to when attacked by a fleet composed mostly of frigates and destroyers, led by the heavy cruiserOctavius. As Caesar's Own leaped in for the kill, the Liberty dropped its shields and fired every weapon it had. The twin broadsides savaged the converging frigates, forcing three to break off the attack without firing a shot. The spinal mount destroyed the frigate Manius, boring into the vitals of the ship as it made a head-on attack. Meanwhile, the remaining TOG ships poured fire into the Liberty. The few breaches were not serious, and the Renegade commander refused to flee.

In the next hours, the damaged Liberty and Octavius began a dangerous dance of position and counter-position. Constantly hampered by the remaining frigates and destroyers, the Liberty extracted a terrible toll on the smaller ships. Finally, the Captain of the Octavius made a critical mistake and allowed the Liberty to close. At the reduced range, the Liberty hit the cruiser time after time with its heavy lasers. Although the Octavius gave almost as good as it got, in the end it was reduced to a floating hulk, gutted by the Liberty. At the moment of the Liberty's apparent victory, however, the Imperial destroyer Noble Incus struck the damaged Renegade ship from the flank. The single broadside proved fatal, starting a series of explosions that broke the spine of the battleship.

The Illustris is not an uncommon sight among battleship squadrons serving on the Commonwealth front. In every county of the Alaric Grand Dukedom, these battleships serve as the flagships for senior TOG admirals commanding multiple battleship groups in the Pembroke, Birchshire, and Shannedam counties.

Because of the Illustris's age and the existence of a new breed of battleships, units that lose an Illustris in combat are more likely to receive another battleship class as a replacement. Only units with political clout and an excellent track record have been able to acquire Illustris Class ships in the past 20 years.